Opinion - With Nintendo’s recent announcement that it has developed a new and better version of the already successful DS handheld, I decided I might do a little research. I enjoy keeping up on game consoles and try to get my hands on new technology early. So, is this new system something I should purchase? Is this the new face of mobile gaming? Let’s look - I can’t be left behind in the technology world.

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Though it was a hot topic on all of the major technology boards and forums, this new Nintendo DSi just doesn’t impress me much. It seems to me that Nintendo is moving in a completely different direction with its product line. The new features are so far from what I am used to seeing from Nintendo, it has kind of left me in a state of confusion.

It is blatantly obvious that the brand spanking new member of the DS family isn’t really much different at all. In looks it is pretty much the same. Nintendo wants the DSi to be a complimentary gaming system to the DS, meaning they feel there was no need to change the design.
 
One of the most exciting, and widely discussed features of the DSi is the fact that it comes equipped with two digital cameras. There is a visible 3.0 megapixel camera on the unit’s exterior, and an interior 0.3 megapixel VGA camera that remains constantly focused on the player.

Typically I don’t play games on small handhelds, because I really can’t see them all that well, so the boasting of a larger screen is intriguing to me. Previously the DS had a diagonal screen width of 3 inches; the new DSi is equipped with a 3.25-inch screen, which is actually a pretty noticeable difference.

Well, now you have another option as a mobile music device. But don’t get too excited about that yet. If you are like me, then the majority of your music is stored in the form of MP3 files meaning that they can be used with your iPod, or other portable MP3 player. The DSi supports AAC files. Even though AAC files are said to have better sound quality than MP3s, I do not know many individuals who use this file type regularly.
 
Another new feature of the DSi is the on-board flash memory that can be used when downloading and storing files from the DSi Shop. This feature is similar to the Wii Shop channel, which will more than likely offer tons of new games, and also games from previous systems. This is the only major difference from the DS/DS Lite is the ability to download and play your favorite titles.

A clear negative is the removal of the GBA cartridge slot. Yes, your system is now slimmer and lighter, but it comes at a cost. You won’t be able to utilize cool ad-ons like the fret board attachment for the DS Guitar hero. Instead, your new device will be equipped with an SD card slot and also the DS game cartridge slot, which is standard.
 
I’m a little iffy on my feelings about the DSi. Yes they equipped it with a few more things, but they really could have taken it a few steps further to truly revolutionize mobile gaming. I’m curious as to whether there will be improvements to the sound quality, and to the web browser as those are both features I would love to see upgraded.

With Nintendo slacking in regards to delivering anything spectacular, I can honestly say that this will more than likely be a piece of technology that I am just not willing to spend $175+ on.

i hate this design

Oct 08, 2008 12:29     

i like the idea of a bigger screen, but adding a crappy 3.0mgpixl camera that's already on my phone and taking out the gba slot, which is actually necessary since some games give you nice bonus's by having the previous game installment. I love my DS the way it is. If they really wanted to shift more units, than they should be realeasing more first party titles. where is my new super mario bros 2? and only one zelda game after 4 years? come on nintend. I

Jonas report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -2

Why bother

Oct 08, 2008 12:40     

"Typically I don’t play games on small handhelds" Then why are you analyzing the new DSi? You already are biased against it and all handheld gaming devices. So go review something you aren't going to tank from the get go.
Luke report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +13

You think

Oct 08, 2008 17:15     

"Typically I don’t play games on small handhelds, because I really can’t see them all that well." "I can honestly say that this will more than likely be a piece of technology that I am just not willing to spend $175 on." LOL
Alto report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +3

card slot changes

Oct 09, 2008 06:46     

is it more likely the changes to the card sockets is motivated more to stop copied games being played. I'm pretty new to the DS console so it might make no difference, but reading that something like 200 million consoles were sold in china but only 100milion games were sold in the same time might mean Nintendo want to do something about this... (yes numbers are wrong but the point is valid)
Guy report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Re: You Think, and Why Bother...

Oct 09, 2008 06:50     

The key phrase here would be "typically", however...I do own both the DS and the PSP, so lets get that straight. If mobile gaming were to be completely revamped- I'd probably do a lot more of it.
Samantha Rose Hunt report abuse vote down vote up Votes: -5

another mediocre essay from a high student

Oct 09, 2008 08:39     

It doesn't take much to be a tgdaily writer does it?
mr.comment report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +3

keep it simple

Oct 09, 2008 09:28     

Screen size sounds great and I think the camera could be useful as long as they have lined up useful gaming applications for it. (Don't make the Sony mistake of adding things for future use, that never get used before the syste is dead.) I don't understand the web browsing thing though. Are enough people really going to surf on this thing, especially when considering the low side of the age range. Also don't think a music player that doesn't support MP3 makes sense given the saturation of the music player market. Focus on gaming. And for gamers an upgrade from the DS Lite might not make sense.

c-drive report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Awful, awful article.

Oct 09, 2008 10:03     

You don't know many people that use AAC regularly, even though it's the default format for iTunes, iTunes store, iPods, Sony Playstations, Sony PSPs, and Nintendo Wiis, and is supported by the Zune, Xbox360, Sansa, Walkman, PalmOS, Blackberry, and pretty much every digital-audio-playback-enabled cell phone and car stereo made within the last two years? And you have the following two sentences separated by a paragraph break and a world of semantic difference: "The new features are so far from what I am used to seeing from Nintendo, it has kind of left me in a state of confusion. It is blatantly obvious that the brand spanking new member of the DS family isn’t really much different at all." So is it "so far from" or "really [not] much different" from Nintento and the DS family? Which one? And this is a great space-filler: "they really could have taken it a few steps further to truly revolutionize mobile gaming." Yes, by leveraging the syngergistic competencies of the WiFi Bluetooth tricorder paradigm, right? Until today, I thought TGDaily provided a more researched and in-depth look than Engadget, Crave, Gizmodo, and the like. Please don't prove me wrong again. PS: I think you mean "complementary" with an "e" in this context, even though that wouldn't make sense either...

CW report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +5

What I use my DS for...

Oct 09, 2008 10:40     

On my DS, I have an R4 with the games I bought (re-downloaded as .NDS files). I also bought the Opera browser with the expansion module. I browse the web anytime I can find a wifi connection (it varies). I have to browse sites like "m.usatoday.com" which are the mobile versions, otherwise it's too slow. I listen to MP3s (500Megs worth), and occasionally I'll DPG a movie to watch for long trips. So the DSi is coming out? Will I buy it? I probably will, because the screen size, the memory is built-in, the browser is useful... But I will take it back to the store if it doesn't work with my R4. The R4 is what makes it useful. That's because I also run homebrew, like DSOrganize. This simple app is REQUIRED if I want to get any use out of a new handheld DS. Sadly, Nintendo just doesn't get it...

Hax Or report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

meh

Oct 10, 2008 11:42     

i feel as if nintendo is going toward a mobile media device then a gaming handheld and i hate the idea of the the DSI shop i like lending games out and with the shop you lose that ability i think that it will only be ok to remove the GBA slot if the come out with a complety backward compatible...GBA2...or 3...lol not the mirco.
dec7m2 report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

AAC vs MP3

Jan 10, 2009 11:57     

"Even though AAC files are said to have better sound quality than MP3s, I do not know many individuals who use this file type regularly." Really? You don't know ANYONE who uses iTunes? By default, iTunes rips CDs to AAC, not MP3. Also, music sold on the iTunes Store is AAC (soon to be all non-DRM'ed, so Wii/DSi/PSP/PS3/Xbox360/etc compatible too). MP3 is DEAD. It's over a decade old and was invented when Windows 3.11 was still being used. Get over it and switch to AAC. The quality is better anyway.

MooCow report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +1

the system on chip i.e cpus other chips and ram are...

Feb 19, 2009 17:43     

the system on chip i.e cpus other chips and ram are doubled up clock speed and theres 4x the ram 16mb vs ds 4mb 3x power of standard ds hope they start using it
wiiboy101 report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0